“To the Evening Star” Summary

“To the Evening Star” Themes

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  Innocence and Divine Protection

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  The Beauty and Danger of Nature

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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “To the Evening Star”

• Lines 1-5

  Thou fair-hair'd angel of the evening,
  Now, whilst the sun rests on the mountains, light
  Thy bright torch of love; thy radiant crown
  Put on, and smile upon our evening bed!
  Smile on our loves;

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 5-8

  and, while thou drawest the
  Blue curtains of the sky, scatter thy silver dew
  On every flower that shuts its sweet eyes
  In timely sleep.

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 8-10

  Let thy west wind sleep on
  The lake; speak silence with thy glimmering eyes,
  And wash the dusk with silver.

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 10-12

  Soon, full soon,
  Dost thou withdraw; then the wolf rages wide,
  And the lion glares thro' the dun forest:

  

  

  

  

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• Lines 13-14

  The fleeces of our flocks are cover'd with
  Thy sacred dew: protect them with thine influence.

  

  

  

  

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“To the Evening Star” Symbols

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  Predatory Animals

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“To the Evening Star” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

• Personification

  

  

  

  

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• Apostrophe

  

  

  

  

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• Imagery

  

  

  

  

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• Juxtaposition

  

  

  

  

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• Metaphor

  

  

  

  

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• Alliteration

  

  

  

  

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“To the Evening Star” Vocabulary

Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

• Thou, Thy, Thine
• Radiant
• Timely
• Full
• Dost
• Wide
• Thro'
• Dun

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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “To the Evening Star”

• Form

• Meter

• Rhyme Scheme

“To the Evening Star” Speaker

“To the Evening Star” Setting

Literary and Historical Context of “To the Evening Star”

More “To the Evening Star” Resources

• External Resources

  • The Poem's First Appearance — Visit the Blake Archive to see images of this poem as Blake first published it in his 1783 collection Poetical Sketches.

  • The Poem Aloud — Listen to a reading of the poem.

  • A Brief Biography — Visit the British Library's website to learn more about Blake's life and work.

  • Blake's Legacy — Read an interview with author Philip Pullman in which he discusses Blake's influence on his work.

  • The Blake Society — Visit the Blake Society's website to learn more about what modern scholars and students are thinking about Blake.

• LitCharts on Other Poems by William Blake

  • A Dream

  • Ah! Sun-flower

  • A Poison Tree

  • Earth's Answer

  • Holy Thursday (Songs of Experience)

  • Holy Thursday (Songs of Innocence)

  • Infant Joy

  • Infant Sorrow

  • Introduction (Songs of Innocence)

  • London

  • Nurse's Song (Songs of Experience)

  • Nurse's Song (Songs of Innocence)

  • The Chimney Sweeper (Songs of Experience)

  • The Chimney Sweeper (Songs of Innocence)

  • The Clod and the Pebble

  • The Divine Image

  • The Ecchoing Green

  • The Fly

  • The Garden of Love

  • The Human Abstract

  • The Lamb

  • The Little Black Boy

  • The Little Vagabond

  • The School Boy

  • The Sick Rose

  • The Tyger

  • To Autumn